For a number of years automobile manufacturers have been providing a center gasoline fill opening at the rear of certain motor vehicle models, and providing in conjunction therewith a combination license plate holder, spring-hinged gasoline fill cover which is hinged along the bottom edge and spring biased to a normal vertical position. This vertical position allows a clear view of the license plate for easy identification of the vehicle during normal operation. To permit refueling of the vehicle, the cover is manually pivoted to a horizontal position to expose the fill opening. The cover must then be held in this horizontal position while the gasoline pump nozzle is inserted in the fill opening. Additionally, it is wise to continue to manually hold the cover during refueling to prevent the spring force of the cover from pushing the nozzle out of the fill opening creating the danger of fire or explosion.
The necessity of manually holding the cover has thus proved to be awkward, inconvenient, and somewhat hazardous. To eliminate this problem the present invention is designed to securely hold the cover in the horizontal or refueling position. This eliminates the need for manually holding the cover either while inserting the nozzle in the fill opening or during refueling.
There is no known prior art which discloses the concept of such a holding device or suggests it in any way.
The invention as herein disclosed primarily involves the addition of a holding arm member which is pivotally attached to the chassis. The device is so designed that once the fill cover is pivoted to its horizontal, or refueling position, the holding arm can be pivoted outwardly to block the movement of the cover and resist the spring force. The awkwardness and inconvenience of having to manually hold the cover is thus eliminated. Moreover, the device prevents the cover from pushing the nozzle out of the fill opening while refueling is taking place and thereby eliminates a hazardous condition.
Additionally, the present invention has been designed for easy and low cost manufacture and installation, without the need for further or special machining of the chassis or even for additional fastening means.
Therefore, the present invention is not only convenient and safe to use, but also very inexpensive to manufacture and install.